DAVID'S RACING POST SATURDAY MUSINGS (p21)18. 05. 2013"My Derby trip will give us all plenty to smile about."Investec Derby Festival 2013Friday 31st May and Saturday June 1st 2013 Investec Ladies' Day Combines high style stakes with
some of the best flat races in the world. Elegant, fashionable racegoers
gather for a classic day's racing at Epsom.

"CONSIDER the children's faces in the picture on this page .
These are the faces of people who have never suffered the agony of the final
leg of a yankie sunk in a photo-finish, a winning passage cruelly blocked, the
sight of a jockey making a complete balls-up of things. They are in other
words, happy smiling faces. No one has told them what can happen in a seller at
Brighton, or in life. It's best to keep quiet
about both.

"Richie McLernon (The old bloke in the centre) is also
smiling. That is partly because he has just won on Coffee, thereby pleasing
owner JP McManus, trainer Jonjo O'Neill and jockey RP McLernon . He may or may
not have pleased AP McCoy, who wouldprobably have ridden the winner if his ribs hadn't been broken. McLernon
may or may not have comforted McCoy with the thought that it was probably just
as well, because McCoy might not have won on Coffee anyway.

"But that is only part of the reason why McLernon is
smiling. There is something infectious about the children's smiles, and
enthusiasm, and energy. I almost smiled myself. The children were loving it,
and they were at Market Rasen thanks to the wonderful Racing to School scheme
run by the British Horseracing Education and Standards Trust. It's a great
initiative and well done to everyone involved.

"The National Curriculum probably doesn't yet make it
compulsory for children to work out what's going to win the Derby, so I'll have to do it for you. It's
only fair to warn you that, after my latest tip, two weeks ago,, friends rang
to tell me "you're The Boss", which was the name of the horse. It
lost, at 4-7. If you read on, you've only yourself to blame. On the other hand,
I did back Libertarian in the Dante at 45-1. I bet you didn't.

"Libertarian will relish the Derby trip but probably not the track, will
probably get too far behind and is probably not good enough.

"All the other recent Derby trials have had small fields and, in
winning one at Leopardstown, Battle Os Marengo was not poetry in motion,
displayed a rather high head carriage and made fairly hard work of a fairly
straightforward task. If he's the best of the Coolmore collection, it doesn't
say much for the others and I'm surprised he's still second favourite at 9-2.

"But is he Aidan O'Brien's best? In the end, both Ruler
Of The World, in the Chester Vase, and Magician, in the Dee Stakes, won quite
impressively and Ruler Of The World didn't race like a horse obviously in need
of the cheekpieces he wore. His attitude looked fine, he was well balanced,
travelled well, quickened and stayed. I'd rather him than Battle Of Marengo, especially
at almost twice the odds.

"IT WILL be interesting to see the riding arrangements
and, if Telescope's setback rules him out of the Derby, Ryan Moore will presumably be
available.

"There has been nothing this week to disturb trainer
Jim Bolger's calm, apart from Dawn Approach's pedigree, which hasn't changed
and waves an enormous red flag over the favourite's prospects of staying the
trip.

"Dawn Approach is the best horse in the field and there
is comfort in his ability to relax and settle well, and in the way in which he
stayed on at the end of the 2,000 Guineas, but this is a very
different test. It is four furlongs further than Dawn Approach has raced before
and virtually everything on the dam's side signals - well, screams -
insufficient stamina. To win, Dawn Approach must outrun his pedigree.

"I don't subscribe to the belief that against lesser Derby rivals class will
overcome a shortage of stamina.

"Horses who don't truly stay the Derby
trip don't win the Derby.
Can you name any who have? These are early season three-year-olds and they have
to stay.

"If Telescope runs, stamina is one thing that will not
cause his downfall, being by Galileo out of a Darshaan mare. He is one of the
most interesting contenders and, if he wins, it will be a a fine training feat
and a cracking fillip for Sir Michael Stoute.

"Ocovango merits respect, largely because he is trained
by Andre Fabre. Ocovango will need to improve and Epsom will be a test for
jockey Pierre-Charles Boudot, whose only previous appearance in Btitain was
when third on Brigantin in the 2011 Ascot Gold Cup'

"I think that covers most things. It doesn't look a
great Derby but the Derby is often a beginning as much as an end.
Really, it's a piece of proverbial cake (coffee and wallnut, perhaps). If Dawn
Approach stays he will win, but he probably won't stay, in which Ruler Of The
World will win. Easy."David, please tell Paddy, (Power and Rory) not to let his tired horse go to war, we don't want any more wars, we have had far too many of those already. M

J Margaret Clarke Turfcall Comment

Punters Zone Focus

David takes a closer look at the 2013 Derby field to bring your horseracing adventure to life for Derby Day 2013http://www.epsomderby.co.uk/

These two know each other well KEVIN partnered this colt
throughout his two year old racing career in 2012. They have both joined up
most day's at exercise at home in Ireland over the last 17 months or
so. Both preparing together for competition on the racetrack's, both needing to
be as athletically fit and as in-tune with each other as it is possible to be,
if they are to be able to compete to win the British Epsom Derby.

Every single race pans out to be different. Depending upon
how much interference occurs. There are
four kinds of interference. Accidental, Careless, On Purpose. (dirty riding) All are highly Dangerous, Riding the Derby track amongst 16 to
20 runners or more, the more dangerous this race or any race becomes. One needs
to be ace accurate in tune with your own colt, and he with you, and acutely
aware of what is going on around you, all at the same time, if you are to keep
out of trouble.

DAWN APPROACH will have already learned to concentrate and to
pay attention to respect, what KEVIN asks him, whilst asking him to work on the
bridle, he will have learned to lead left hand (near fore) or right hand (off
fore), he will have learned how to balance at racing pace down hill, he will have learned how to keep his balance
galloping around downhill bends at racing pace, he has learned to concentrate
when racing with many other horses all around him. All
this work KEVINhas guided this colt to
learn and to achieve daily. A very fine work of art that can never be allowed
to fade out.

The Derby a left handed track, the distance 1m4f, with a
gradual downhill camber from the starting stalls with two steeper downhill
bends to be tackled, the last bend being Tattenham Corner whichafter, levels out taking the runners into the
level straight and the final furlongs to the finishing line in front of the stands.